04. Part 3 - 1st Division

Part 3 In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
John 1:1

First Division

1. Nathanael finds in the Scriptures, what his instructors also teach: the mystery of the revelation of each of the Three Spirits also called the Three Beings, in the unity of the Godhead.

It was not necessary for me to investigate the mystery of the manifestation of Him, whom we Israelites address in our prayers, "Our Father, who art in heaven," because I have never doubted the existence of Him who has said, "If then I be a Father, where is mine honour?" (Malachi 1:6); but I have been led by a power, once unknown to me, into the inquiry, how the other two Spirits have revealed themselves. In what manner the Holy Spirit and the Spirit which is the middle pillar in the Godhead, have been manifested.

I found that the Spirit which is in the middle pillar in the Godhead, has revealed Himself as "the WORD (Memra) of the Lord," as the uncreated, self-existing WORD, to which WORD the Holy Scriptures ascribe the holy name Jehovah (Yud Hei Vav Hei), and all the attributes of God. This middle Spirit is not called פתגמא because that always expresses what we call a word, an idea clothed with the articulation of our organs of speech; but Memra
(מימרא), in the Greek, Logos (λογος).

2. The WORD (Memra) of the Lord, is called Jehovah (Yud Hei Vav Hei). Our God has declared by the Prophet Isaiah (42:8), "I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another." What a stream of light was poured into my mind, when investigating the mystery contained in these words "Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven" (Genesis 19:24). My teacher, Jonathan ben Uziel, taught me, by his Jerusalem Paraphrase, that the Lord (Yud Hei Vav Hei) mentioned in this passage of Scripture, is the WORD of the Lord.

"And the WORD of the Lord caused to descend upon the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, brimstone and fire from the Lord from heaven."

3. The WORD of the Lord, is the Creator of man and of the world. That this WORD is the essential and uncreated WORD, one of the Three Heads (see Part 2, #5) which are One, is evident from His being the Creator of man, as the Jerusalem Paraphrase of Jonathan Ben Uziel (Genesis 1:27) faithfully teaches me, saying:

"And the WORD of Jehovah created man in His likeness, in the likeness of Jehovah, Jehovah created, male and female created He them."

I clearly perceive that the WORD is called Jehovah, and that through Him (the uncreated, self-existing WORD) all things, visible and invisible, were created. Thus I read in the Jerusalem Targum (Exodus 3:14):

"And the WORD of the Lord said unto Moses: I am He who said unto the world, Be! and it was: and who in the future shall say to it, Be! and it shall be. And He said: Thus thou shalt say to the children of Israel: I Am hath sent me unto you."

4. The Patriarchs believed in the WORD Jehovah.

I see the Patriarch Jacob, staff in hand, ready to proceed in the morning, on the way to his uncle Laban. The night before, he has had the wonderful vision, in a dream, of the ladder reaching from the earth to heaven, and the Lord standing above it, and repeating the promise which had been made in covenant with our Father Abraham. He lingers at Bethel, and vows a vow, saying (Genesis 28:20-21): "And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in the way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God." My teacher, Onkelos, in his Chaldee Paraphrase, renders the vow of father Jacob in the following manner:

"And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If the WORD of Jehovah will be my support, and will keep me in the way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the WORD of Jehovah be my God." This also was the faith of my nation at the time when Jonathan ben Uziel wrote the Jerusalem Paraphrase, in which I find it written on Deuteronomy 26:17:

"This day, you have made the WORD of Jehovah to be King over you, to be your God. And the WORD of Jehovah shall rule over you, having a right (’In His own name’) hereto, over a people beloved, as His peculiar people; as He has spoken unto you, that you should keep all His commandments."

5. Who was the Lawgiver? The ancient faith of my nation was that the WORD of the Lord was the Lawgiver. That no other than the WORD of Jehovah has been their Lawgiver, is proved from the words of the Jerusalem Targum, on Exodus 20:1, in which we read as follows:

"And the WORD of the Lord spake all these glorious words."

6. Father Abraham’s faith.

It is evident that the faith of Jacob was the same as that of our father Abraham, for I find that Abraham believed in the WORD of the Lord according to the testimony of Onkelos, in his paraphrase of Genesis 15:6:

"Abraham believed in the WORD of the Lord, and He counted it to him for righteousness."

Again, we see our father Abraham’s faith in the Memra, the uncreated WORD, at the offering up of his son Isaac. Upon Isaac asking (Genesis 22:7), "Where is the Lamb for a burnt-offering?" our father Abraham replied, according to the Jerusalem Targum:

"The WORD of the Lord will provide me a lamb; and if not, then thou, my son, shalt be the burnt-offering."

7. In whose name our Father Abraham prayed.

I find that Abraham prayed in the name of the WORD of the Lord, and addressed his prayers to Him, as the WORD of the Lord. This is taught by the Jerusalem Targum (Genesis 22:14):

"And Abraham worshiped and prayed in the name of the WORD of the Lord, and said, Thou art the Lord who dost see, but Thou canst not be seen." This faith Abraham had taught his household, for we find Hagar using the same language as her master, Abraham, according to the Jerusalem Targum (Genesis 16:13):

"And Hagar praised and prayed in the name of the WORD of the Lord, who had revealed Himself unto her: she said, Blessed art Thou, O God, who livest to all eternity, who hast seen my affliction."

8. Whom did Moses, our Teacher, worship? My heart leapt for joy when my teacher, Jonathan ben Uziel, in his Jerusalem Targum, taught me that our great Teacher, Moses, our master of blessed memory, never worshiped any other but the WORD of the Lord (Numbers 10:35-36):

"It came to pass when the ark was lifted up, Moses stood with his hands lifted up in prayer, and said; Stand up now, O WORD of the Lord, in the strength of Thy might, and let the enemies of Thy people be scattered, and those that hate Thee, flee from before Thee. And when the ark came to rest, Moses lifted up his hands in prayer, and said: Return now, O WORD of the Lord, from the might of Thine anger, and come to us in Thy mercies, which are so good, and bless the ten thousands, and multiply the thousands of the children of Israel."

9. Moses committed the faith of the Patriarchs to the keeping of their descendants.

I find the children of Israel, having been brought in safety through the Red Sea, obtained the testimony. In Exodus 14:31, we read, "They believed in the Lord and in His servant Moses."

Onkelos, in order to preserve the true faith of the children of Israel, paraphrases these words thus:

"And they believed in the WORD of the Lord, and in the prophecy of Moses, His servant."

10. No oath was valid amongst my ancestors, except by the WORD of the Lord. The Lord our God, is jealous of His glory, and His holy name He cannot impart to any created being. This essential and self-existing WORD (Memra), must necessarily be a part of the essence in the Godhead, otherwise Jonathan ben Uziel would not have told the people that the Church, from the beginning up to his own time, considered no oath valid unless taken in the name of the WORD of the Lord.

Moses says (Deuteronomy 6:13), "Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve Him, and shalt swear by His name." This passage, Jonathan ben Uziel paraphrases:

"Ye shall fear before the presence of the Lord your God, and before Him ye shall worship, and by the name of the WORD of the Lord ye shall swear in truth."

Hence I perceive, that as long as the faith of the primitive Church of my nation was preserved in its purity, no oath was taken in court of justice, but by the name of the WORD of the Lord. A few instances out of many may suffice to prove this.

I find Rahab saying to the spies of Joshua (2:12): "Now therefore swear unto me by the Lord, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also show kindness unto my father’s house, and give me a true token." This passage is thus paraphrased by Jonathan ben Uziel:

"Now therefore swear unto me by the WORD of the Lord, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father’s house, and give me a true token."

Following the thread of the history of the pure faith, as retained in Israel, I learn that the elders swore by no other than the WORD of the Lord, according to the Paraphrase of Jonathan ben Uziel on Joshua 9:19:

"But all the princes said unto all the congregation, We have sworn unto them by the WORD of the Lord, the God of Israel; and now, therefore, we dare not injure them."

Even the Heathen knew that Israel swore by no other than by the WORD of the Lord; hence the elders of Gilead, according to the Paraphrase of Jonathan ben Uziel (Judges 11:10), said:

"And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah: The WORD of the Lord be witness between us, if we do not according to thy word."

11. The reason why my ancestors swore by the WORD of the Lord.

They believed in the WORD of the Lord as being truly God. Thus we have, according to the Paraphrase of Jonathan ben Uziel, Jonathan saying to David (1 Samuel 20:23):

"And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, the WORD of the Lord be witness between me and thee for ever."

According to the Chaldee Paraphrase, Jonathan, on parting with David, says (verse 42):

"And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying, The WORD of the Lord be witness between me and thee, and between my son and thy son for ever."

12. The command of the ancient teachers of Israel. Our ancient teachers were very anxious that Israel should preserve the pure faith which had been committed to them. Thus I find the exhortation in Psalms 62:9: "Trust in Him at all times; pour out your heart before Him: God is a refuge for us. Selah": which in the Chaldee Paraphrase is thus expressed:

"Trust in the WORD of the Lord at all times, O people of the house of Israel! pour out before Him the sighings of your heart; say, God is our trust for ever."

13. The WORD of the Lord must be obeyed as God.

Having discovered the path to the profound treasures of Divine truth, I was led onward, by my ancient teachers, and drank the refreshing streams of the cloven rock of ages. Thus I was enabled to discover that my forefathers had steadfastly believed that our great teacher, Moses, of blessed memory, required from the children of Israel the strictest obedience to the WORD of the Lord. I read in Deuteronomy 28:1-2: "And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all His commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God."

Onkelos has this paraphrase upon these words:

"And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently to the WORD of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all His commandments which I command thee this day, the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations on the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken to the WORD of the Lord thy God." In case of disobedience to the WORD of the Lord, Moses threatens that all the curses of the Law should come upon the people, as Onkelos paraphrases in Deuteronomy 28:15:

"But it shall come to pass, if ye will not hearken to the WORD of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all His commandments and His statutes which I command thee this day, that all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake (or cleave unto) thee."

[JCR - For more on the thought that not hearkening to the WORD of the Lord will bring curses on the nation Israel, please see the online book The Holocaust - Where Was God? by A. Katz. NOTE: This link will take you off this website.]

14. Nathanael discovers that God never made a covenant with any of the Patriarchs except through the mediation of the WORD of the Lord.

Having discovered, through my teachers, that the WORD was the lawgiver on Mount Sinai, the question presented itself to my mind: Has God ever made a covenant except through the WORD of the Lord?

I found the following facts preserved in the Paraphrases. We read in Genesis 9:17: "And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which, I have established between Me and all flesh that is upon the earth." Which Onkelos thus paraphrases:

"And the Lord said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant which I have established between My WORD, and between all flesh that is upon the earth."

Again, I read in Genesis 17:7: "And I will establish my covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee." Paraphrased by Onkelos:

"And I will establish my covenant between My WORD and between thee," &c.

15. Nathanael is led to believe that there is no salvation but in the WORD of the Lord.

Having seen that God had never made a covenant except through or with the WORD, as the Representative or Mediator of His people, I examined whether the WORD of the Lord, may not be the Saviour so often mentioned in the Holy Scriptures. My mind became satisfied on this subject by considering the following passages. When dying, Jacob, blessing his children, exclaimed (Genesis 49:18), "I have waited for Thy salvation, O Lord!" These words Jonathan ben Uziel paraphrases, in his Jerusalem Targum, in this manner:

"Our father Jacob said: My soul does not wait for a salvation such as that wrought out by Gideon, the son of Joash, for that was but temporal; neither for a salvation like that of Samson, which was only transitory; but for that salvation which Thou hast promised to come, through Thy WORD, unto Thy people, the children of Israel; for Thy salvation my soul hopes." That this was one of the cardinal points in the creed of my forefathers, is manifest from many passages of Holy Writ as expounded by the ancient paraphrasts, especially by Jonathan ben Uziel. I shall only cite two, out of many passages which have poured light into my mind. In Isaiah 45:17; Isaiah 45:25, I read: "But Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation...In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory."

Jonathan ben Uziel renders this passage thus:

"Israel shall be saved in the WORD of the Lord with an everlasting salvation...In the WORD of the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and (in the WORD of the Lord) they shall glory." In whatever part of the Holy Scriptures everlasting salvation is mentioned, we find that it is wrought out by no other than the WORD of the Lord. Thus, for example, we read in Hosea 1:7: "But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the Lord their God." This Jonathan ben Uziel paraphrases:

"But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and I will save them by the WORD of the Lord their God."

I perceive that this passage speaks of two persons: I, Jehovah, will have mercy—I, Jehovah, will save; and this mercy and this salvation shall be brought about by another person, namely, by the WORD of the Lord, which WORD is their God. No wonder that Daniel prayed to be heard for the sake of the Lord. Daniel 9:17, "Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of Thy servant, and his supplications, and cause Thy face to shine upon Thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake." R. Simeon explained this passage thus (Zohar, part iii., p. 21, versa):

"What is the reason that he says for the Lord’s sake? Because Jehovah cannot be found except in the Lord, who is His dwelling."* * Regarding this mystery that God is only to be found in the Lord who is Metatron, read Third Division #5.

I find the same doctrine in the Book of Creation, in the Commentary of R. Abraham ben David, "It is thus known that the Lord comprehends (lit. encompasses) Jehovah (Elohim), our God, Jehovah."